"Where is your dyeing master?" Sun Miao'er stopped the workers next to her. She felt it was necessary to have a good talk with the master in charge of this aspect from the Wei family.
After all, she's new here and might not be able to win people over.
A short while later, the worker led over a male worker in his forties. The man was wearing a short-sleeved shirt with the cuffs rolled up, and his body was covered in colorful dyes.
"Chen Ping, Master Chen, his family has worked for this company for three generations," the worker introduced.
When Chen Ping heard that his employer had hired a skilled master from outside to instruct them, he thought it was some formidable character. However, upon seeing her, he realized she was just a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, so he naturally didn't take Sun Miao'er seriously.
He glanced at her sideways: "What? What's your opinion, young lady?"
Sun Miao'er sensed the deep disdain in the other person's eyes, but she didn't care. After all, the other person was an experienced master, and her coming here was at most a matter of learning from his strengths and making up for her own weaknesses. She didn't dare to make any boastful remarks.
"I dare not presume to offer such insightful opinion, but Master Chen, do you find the color somewhat abrupt?" Sun Miao'er stirred the wooden stick in the dye vat, and the settled dye liquid immediately became turbid, its color different from when it had been left to stand.
unexpected?
Hearing such words from a young girl, Chen Ping was furious and embarrassed. He retorted, "What's so abrupt about it! I've worked for the Wei family for so many years, and no one has ever said anything like that!"
Sun Miao'er casually picked up a piece of cloth that was half-dry. "Master Chen, look at this vermilion fabric. It looks especially beautiful when it's drying in the sun, but if it's indoors without natural light, it will probably look vulgar."
"This material is smooth and reflects light quite strongly, but its use is extremely limited. In my opinion, it's not quite suitable for making clothing, but it's more suitable for making light-receiving curtains!"
Chen Ping was enraged by Sun Miao'er's words. He relied on his family's traditional skills to dye the fabric for the Wei family. Although it could not compare to the official weaving bureau, it was still a fine product. How could she belittle it to such an extent!
The workers watching from the sidelines were also indignant. They still respected Master Chen's skills and joined in the commotion, saying, "What's the use of just talking? Show us your skills!"
“Okay.” Sun Miao’er smiled confidently. “Go and prepare three catties of dried mulberry leaves for me.”
The workers looked at each other, puzzled, and asked, "What do you need mulberry leaves for?"
Chen Ping calmly said, "Go get it for her. I want to see what tricks she can pull."
Dahuai Village is an important center for sericulture, with mulberry leaves almost everywhere. Farmers don't grow crops in their fields, but rather mulberry trees.
In less than half an incense stick's time, several workers came over carrying a bag of dried mulberry leaves.
"Set up a pot for me and boil some water." Sun Miao'er opened the cloth bag and picked through the leaves, selecting only those that were so dry they would crumble at the slightest touch.
No one knew what she was up to, but after receiving a signal from Chen Ping, they had no choice but to do as she said.
Once the pot was set up, Sun Miao'er quickly lit the fire and added dried mulberry leaves as fuel.
The pot on top was full of water, and the fire was burning, with wisps of blue smoke rising from it.
Chen Ping, with an expression of waiting to see a good show, didn't interrupt her, but just stood by with his arms crossed and a cold look on his face.
The pot was large and deep, and even after boiling for quite a while, the water didn't move.
Sun Miao'er kept adding dried mulberry leaves to the fire, and in the blink of an eye, more than half of the full bag of dried mulberry leaves had been used up.
After the bag of mulberry leaves was used up, the water in the pot slowly boiled, bubbling and churning.
Sun Miao'er waved her hand, signaling the workers to remove the pot. They then used sticks to stir the mulberry leaf ash until all the flames were extinguished before shoveling up the mulberry leaf ash and wrapping it in gauze.
The onlookers were stunned, wondering what she was planning to do with the dark, grimy leaves.
Sun Miao'er tied the gauze bag tightly with cloth and threw it directly into the boiling water. After rinsing it repeatedly, the once clear and transparent water gradually became murky and dirty, with an indistinguishable color.
Then she picked up a wooden ladle, filled it with mulberry wood ash water, and poured it all into the dye vat next to her.
Chen Ping was shocked and shouted, "What are you doing!"
"What else can I do besides color mixing?"
Sun Miao'er observed the subtle changes in color and felt it was still not enough, so she poured in another scoop of water.
Chen Ping tried to stop her, but before he could make a move, she stirred the dye in the vat and changed its color.
The audacity of his move was something no one present had anticipated.
They all felt that a perfectly good vat of dye had been ruined.
Just as Sun Miao'er was about to add the mulberry leaf ash water for the third time, Chen Ping finally stopped her, asking, "Do you know how much silver this vat of dye is worth?"
Sun Miao'er was not afraid at all. She met his angry eyes and said, "After I change the color for you, I can at least triple the price of your cloth."
"How arrogant!" Chen Ping said disdainfully.
With a flick of her wrist, Sun Miao'er took advantage of Chen Ping's momentary lapse in attention and added the third batch of ash water. The color in the dye vat could only faintly show an earthy hue, turning into a very indistinct yellow.
"Bring me raw silk."
Seeing that the color had been mixed to a generally satisfactory degree, Sun Miao'er put down the wooden ladle, "We'll know how it is once we try it on raw silk."
Sun Miao'er threw the raw silk into the dye vat, stirred it several times, rinsed it with clean water, and repeated this process two or three times until the raw silk was dyed.
Chen Ping initially disagreed with her approach, finding it absurd, but after seeing the finished product, he had to admit his mistake.
The dye mixed with mulberry leaf ash water produces a color that is more rustic and dignified than the original. If the previous color was like a bright young girl, the current color is like a dignified noblewoman.
The subtle patterns on the raw silk appear even more luxurious against the backdrop of ochre.
"So, mulberry wood ash water is the method you're going to teach us?" Although Chen Ping admitted it in his heart, he still refused to admit it on the surface.
Sun Miao'er shook her head: "Master Chen, you're a veteran in this industry, you don't really think it's that simple, do you?"
"Color blending is not only about following the proportions, but more importantly, it depends on the eye of the dyeing master. It's not just about the bright areas, but also about the texture and light of the material in the dark."
"The same ratio of mulberry wood ash water is not something to be rigidly followed. I added ash water three times for this color, so how many times should I add it for a different color? It all depends on personal feeling."
Laymen wouldn't understand this, but Chen Ping did. Yes, in their line of work, visual perception is the most important thing, because the same proportions can produce different colors depending on factors such as the temperature of the weather and the water.
The fact that this little girl understands this point shows that she truly knows it, rather than figuring it out by chance.
Chen Ping snorted coldly and said stubbornly, "It is indeed a feasible method!"
Sun Miao'er realized that although Master Chen was concerned about his reputation, he wasn't stubborn or inflexible. It seemed there was still hope for the Wei family.
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